We always begin these things saying “what to say about Scottie…?”

He is my twin, plays like a beast and is a great dude. If you didn’t know he and his team were champions of AHBPC12-Perth, holding the trophy over their heads for their home crowd.

Scotties bike choice has alwas facinated me, from his breakless Charge plug with a Mishka Eye disc cover, to a 26 front 700 rear abomination of a polo bike. This bike (piece of sexiness) is the culimantion of months of work and planning. I am stoked to get a good look at it.

If I didn’t have a girlfriend, and the bike wasn’t in Perth I would probably sleep with it… Scottie, your bike is that awesome!

Here is Lookin at Scotties Bits (finally!):

Owner: Scott D’Mello

City: Perth

Frame/Fork: Marino custom!

Headset: odyssey headset.

Bars/stem: Volume thrasher trickster bars 1.5″ rise I think… Odyssey v3 stem

Grips/Bar ends: Black Oury grips. No bar ends, should probably get some before I injure someone.

Seat/Post: Sadio pivotal seat with a odyssey convertible pivotal seat post

Pedals: Odyssey twisted pedals to BO gear straps! The best straps ever!

Cranks/BB: Profile 165mm titanium 48 spline, profile titanium, 19mm internal euro bb.

Sprocket: 30t Sadio 48 spline.

Brakes: Paul motolite v brakes front and rear. Paul dual pull leaver. Some standard shimano brake cables.

 

Front Wheel/Tyre: Profile titanium 48h hub to 26″ salsa gordo rims with 1.9 26″ continental town and county tyres

Rear Wheel/Tyre: Same as above.. But with a 18t white industries trials freewheel!

 

Why did you choose this bike? 

I chose this bike, because I was looking for a custom polo bike, and marino was the best I found, and right in my price range. I also love the look of triple triangle frames with the curvy seat posts so I fell in love with it right away. Its my dream bike. Also the frame weighs a fair bit less then my old charge.

How long have you played on this bike for? Have you played on anything else?
I’ve been playing on this frame for 3 weeks now. and I’m in love with it. it’s perfect. fast, tight, and quick around corners. i used to play on a charge plug, with a leaf fork, and a mixture of parts. the thing was falling apart, wheels buckled, brakes rubbing/ not even working. it was time to retire it and step up.

What are the best things about your bike?
WHERE DO I BEGIN!? straight away the brakes actually stop me. the freewheel engages faster. the turing on it is quicker. its lighter for max bunny hops! the wheels are strong as fuck and actually true. (for now)! oh i could go on and on! but i won’t.

What are the worst things about your bike? What would you change?
It needs more stickers! And a BO gear top tube pad! and fatter tyres, oh and cleats so i can actually beat ned in the joust -.-

Who did you get to build the wheels?
Liberty Cycles in Perth built the wheels for me. They were great to deal with, and did an amazing job. They had them finished same day I dropped them off. So I was on the court straight away! Liberty were one of our major sponsors for the 2012 nationals. Great bunch of guys, friendly and helpful. If you are ever in Perth you should drop by and buy some shit!

Photo credit: Marty Dardy and Derren Hall

By Ollie Wykeham

Don’t forget to check out JT – Jeremy Teague’s bits here.

The face-mask is the new vouge of Australian polo. Or so it seemed at AHBPC12 in Perth. For the boys seemed to be looking to protect their assets by any means necessary. Unlike our ever tough polo ladies, who laughed at this wanten display of vanity. Here are a couple of photos I snatched between beers and hangs. There aren’t many photos, I was having too much fun, drinking/talking/pickup all took priority, so enjoy the few I have.

Ned demonstrating the Mycro Hurling helmet he, Scottie and Jordy-Boy swear by, these helmets seem light, durable and the cage does not block the view like others. Jordan upgraded to one of these from a cricket helmet, which he said limited his view too much. (I want a Mycro, but I still secretly want to try a cricket helmet first!)

 

Domenico, my team mate (♥), opted for a Bauer ice hockey mask. His is clear perspex. This avoids any potential inhibited vision, but the down side is it can fog up. He was telling me that in big games when he is sweaty and under the pump that it is like being in a sauna.
From the man himself:

“You can’t touch your face at all. But it’s extremely light weight and you forget you have it on you face. As after a game at Nats in Perth I slammed a beer into the fish bowl.”

 

Rob once again testing Teds ice hockey mask. Teddy Boy bought this off ebay for cheap cheap cheap in the days before nationals, he wore it a little but said it was uncomfortable. To be honest I think it cramped his reckless style. Ether way we got his moneys worth for him in one night of drunken antics pre AHBPC12. This looks to be a great budget option.

 

This is Jamie attempting to punish himself after asking Ted to put the mask on, then punching him hard in the face. No Ted’s were hurt in the making of this photo. Nor in the testing of these masks. Nor in the pre AHBPC12 celebrations.

If DIY is your thing, or you want some more options or discussion have a look at the LoBP thread on this matter.

In conclusion: if you want to protect your pretty looks, get a face cage.
There are plenty of options out there, just be smart and weigh up the pros and cons, or as Wikipedia just taught me the “pro et contra” – (the original Latin, meaning for and against.)

By Ollie Wykeham

Well what can I say about Scotty?  There’s a lot I really want to write but I know that he will send this to his Mum.  I met her at AHBPC 2012 and she is really lovely so I will try to hold back.  Nobody is better at not giving a fuck that Scotty.  Pretty much every photo of every game of AHBPC 2011 had Scotty in the background, laying across the barriers, one arm under his head, sunglasses on, absolutely motionless despite the action in front of him. NASFWG, indeed.  Here’s a little more about Scotty.

City:  Perth

Team:  NASFWG (Not a single fuck was given)

Years played:  1

Super power:  Not giving a fuck

Favourite heckle: I beat Ned in the joust! I beat Ned in the joust!

Bike:  Charge frame, freewheel with dual brake and 30:18 ratio

Mallet:  Fixcraft with uncapped head with closed sides

Protection:  Gloves and a face mask

What do you love most about bike polo?
People

If you missed our last player profile on William Jetnikoff, you can access it here

By Virginia Castellan